On 21-28 April 2007 representatives of ARC Fund, the Center for the Study of Democracy, and regional governors from the South-West Region of Bulgaria took part in a study visit to the partnering regions – Baden-Württemberg, Germany, and West Midlands, UK, under the initiative for the elaboration of a Regional Innovation Strategy for the South-West region. The objective of the visit was exchange of experience and discussion of the regional innovation strategies follow-up and implementation, including the mechanisms of financing regional innovation-based economic development, boosting the research potential and promoting the collaboration between the enterprises and research institutes. In Baden-Württemberg, the Steinbeis Foundation presented its model for technology transfer. The main principle underpinning the Steinbeis Foundation’s performance lies in the customer-driven approach. The Steinbais centers reside mainly in the universities and are established only provided there is demand from SMEs for a certain service or expertise. The Baden-Württemberg region’s economic policy on the other hand is directed towards revitalization of infrastructures and encouraging investments by private companies, thus creating jobs and increasing the competitiveness of SMEs. The support includes loans for start-ups, investments in modern technologies, environmental protection, energy saving, and support to SMEs business growth, provided by the Ministry of Economy, which is entrusted with managing the EU Structural Funds. Dr. Wolfgang Schuster, the Mayor of Stuttgart also welcomed the Bulgarian delegation during their visit in City Hall.
In UK the Bulgarian delegation met with representatives of the Government Office for the West Midlands, the Advantage West Midlands (the Regional Development Agency), the City Council, Coventry University, the lord mayor of Coventry and other key players in the field of innovation and regional development. They presented to the delegation their mechanisms of financing innovation, promoting education and start-ups of new enterprises in the region mainly by strengthening the intermediaries as ones best ensuring the link between industry and research. Their innovation policy is based primarily on encouraging the enterprises to get maximum benefits from the joint work with the universities in the region, increasing the research potential and organizing demonstration activities. The region receives a relatively small share of Government and EU funding in R&D as compared to other regions in the UK, however the investments from the universities in this sphere are quite high. Also, the regional policy has put special focus on providing incentives for the young people studying in the local universities to find professional realization there instead of leaving the region and work elsewhere. Regarding the industrial policy, the region aims at diversifying its production, moving to more perspective sectors in order to become independent of the industries that used to be the fundament of regional development in the past such as the automotive production.
Agenda of the study visit in Germany (Adobe PDF, 78 KB)
Agenda of the study visit in UK (Adobe PDF, 14 KB)
Regional Innovation Policy Initiative for the South-West Planning Region of Bulgaria
www.innovation.bg
